On April 24, 1990, the space shuttle Discovery deployed the Hubble Space Telescope 380 miles above Earth’s distorting atmosphere. Since then, Hubble has revolutionized astronomy by giving astronomers a clearer view of the universe. The telescope has provided intriguing new clues to the birth of galaxies, monster black holes, and planetary systems around stars. The following list highlights some of Hubble’s greatest discoveries.
Hubble’s powerful capabilities have unveiled the deepest portrait of the visible universe ever achieved by humankind. The telescope has allowed astronomers to peer into the outer limits of the universe and uncover a “scrapbook” full of snapshots of never-before-seen galaxies. Hubble’s “Deep Field” observations have helped astronomers follow the evolution of star and galaxy formation.
The space telescope has uncovered evidence for the existence of supermassive black holes in space. Hubble’s observations confirm that supermassive black holes are so common that nearly every large galaxy has one.
Peering into the star-forming region of the Orion nebula and other gaseous clouds in our galaxy, Hubble discovered that pancake-shaped disks of gas and dust surround many young stars. These disks, or proplyds, may eventually condense and form planetary systems.
Hubble witnessed a once-in-a-millennia event when comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided with Jupiter. It captured dramatic images of massive explosions that sent towering mushroom-shaped fireballs of hot gas into Jupiter’s sky.
Hubble has helped astronomers precisely calculate the age of the universe. It has narrowed the universe’s age to 13.8 billion years, with an uncertainty of only 40 million years. Astronomers used Hubble to make observations of pulsating stars called Cepheid variables. These stars are used to measure vast distances and calculate the universe’s expansion rate and age.
The space telescope has also played a key role in discovering that a mysterious force called dark energy is pushing galaxies apart at an ever-increasing rate as well as accelerating the expansion rate of the universe.
First Published: April 9, 2015, 4:00 a.m.
